Setting the Example
by icykisses
Summary: A good 'ol friend of Misty's- Misty. Confused? (AAMRN) and eh-- yeah, it works both ways (still confused?) Heh.
1. Default Chapter

Setting the Example

_"Imitation is suicide.  But to mock?  Well, that's a whole other story…"_

~the author of this story

Chapter 1

The sky had darkened immensely by now and the moon was beginning to climb the skies, dragging the lazy pools of stars with it.  A gym match had never lasted this long before…  But it was finally over with.  Ash hummed proudly and marched out of the gym examining his new Marx badge.

"Another day, another badge."  He said with a proud grin. 

"At this rate, the gym leaders should be cowering in fear by now, Ash."  Brock complimented.

Misty elbowed Brock side, "What do you think you're doing?"  She whispered, "Give him another ego boost and he might explode!"

"Don't worry, there's plenty enough room in his head."  Brock chuckled.

"Stop talking about me!"  Ash sweatdropped, but didn't look around, "I'm not deaf, y'know."  At this, he pinned the badge inside his jacket with the others, and stopped shortly at the entrance of the Poke'Center.  "Let's just get a room for tonight.  I'm too tired to argue, much less continue."

"Pi…"  Pikachu agreed tiredly from upon Ash's shoulder.

"It's about time we find the Poke'Center."  Misty said as they filed into the building one by one.

The warm lights and the cheery Nurse Joy welcomed the weary travelers as always.  "Hi Ash."  She said, recalling his face from an earlier checkup on his pokemon, she began to slide open the drawer with the keys...  "You want those rooms, right?"

"That'd be great, Nurse Joy!"  He smiled.

Her smile faded a little… she sighed, "But I'm afraid we only have one room left…  And it's-um-a bit small…  A few other trainers came in about an hour ago and they really needed that room since the poor girl wasn't feeling well."  She chuckled, "A feisty little red-head, though, despite her feverish migraines."

"Ah… how small is this other room?"  Brock asked.

"Well, it only has one bed."  Nurse Joy said uneasily and glanced at Misty, "I'm not too sure if I'm even comfortable with that." 

Misty blushed and avoided her looks by staring at an old picture on the wall that she had no interest in.

"Well…"  Ash looked over to the blushing Misty, "Okay, I guess Misty could take that one.  Me and Brock will sleep on the couches out here, if that's alright with you, Nurse Joy."

Misty immediately looked over to Ash, her blush faded by now, "Are you sure, Ash?"

"Sure."  He nodded.

Pikachu looked from Ash to Misty to Ash to Misty, hopped off Ash's shoulder and joined Misty's.

"Traitor."  Ash mumbled, balling up his fists.  Misty giggled and scratched the rodent pokemon behind the ears.

"Well, let's go, Pikachu."  Misty said cheerfully, "Oh, Nurse Joy…"

Recognizing the worried tone in her voice, Joy nodded in assurance, "Togepi's doing just fine.  He'll be completely healthy by tomorrow morning."

Misty smiled weakly, but headed down the hall as she parted from Brock and Ash, whom headed to the couches.

"G'night, Ash."  Misty said quietly, shutting her door.

"Goodnight, Misty."  He smiled.

Brock watched Ash grin stupidly at her shut door down the hall as Joy disappeared, unnoticed, into a door behind the counter with a yawn.  

"Mm-hm…"  He hummed with a forefinger and thumb to his chin, "G'night, Ash."  He said a little loudly, elbowing his side.

"What?"  He asked, slightly irritated.

Brock chuckled, "Well, now that she's gone and there's nobody else to gaze at, shall we head off to sleep?"

"I wasn't gazing at anyone!"  Ash blushed.

"True. But you did end up gazing at Misty's door."

His blush increased, and he stuttered.  "W-would you j-j-just go on?!"  

Brock stifled a laugh, "Whatever you say, Casanova."

"I'm not--!!"

Pikachu rolled across Misty's bed with a happy squeal, realizing how soft and luxurious it felt, and how blissful sleeping on it would feel.  Misty, on the other hand, sat across from him, hugging a pillow to her chest and staring into nothing.  Pikachu noticed her worried expression and crawled over to her.  "Pi-pi-pi?"

"Nothing's wrong, Pikachu…"  She muttered in a dead-like tone.

"Pika-pi, pi-pi?"  

"No, it's not about Ash…"  She smiled a little and blushed, "For once.."

"Pika!"  It urged, resting it's chin on her knee.

"It's Togepi.  He's been injured for an entire day, pretty badly, too."  She said, burying her face in the pillow.  Pikachu crawled onto her shoulder and nuzzled her cheek.  "Pi-ii-ka.."

"She's just probably thankful for the room, Brock." 

"Sure, sure, whatever you say…"  Brock said while Ash shot him an angry glare as he tried his best to get comfortable on the old couch.  "Goodnight, Casanova."

Ash frowned and sighed tiredly, "Goodnight, Brock."

The moonlight spilled into the building with its curtain of soft light.  A few of its rays splayed across Ash's still awaken face and he stared at the ceiling, every once and a while, looking over at Brock, who was now sound asleep.  The gentle rumble of thunder growled in the skies and he sighed inwardly as a few raindrops splattered against the large windows.  The Poke'Center grew cold and silent as the night lurked deeper and, still, Ash's mind reeled through the still nothingness of the night like a knowledge-hungry cheetah.  He wondered about his latest battles –win some, lose none- , he thought about his gym matches, he even thought about the last encounter with Gary… but it all did a u-turn back to Misty.  So, feeling mentally helpless, he gave in to the bragging a persuading of his own mind and thought about Misty.  

This nightly serenade ends up with the same outcome every single night for the past eight weeks for Ash.  Thinking about battles, matches, and badges, only led him to think about Misty, somehow.  Sometimes, even when battling, he couldn't concentrate on a good battle plan because Project: MISTY would always pollute his battle strategies.  

For example:

[ flashback ]

"A geodude, huh?"  Ash smirked at his opponent.  He eagerly reached for a pokeball when everything went blank…

Misty noticed the sudden washed out expression on his face and stepped in, "What's wrong, Ash?"

He cringed inwardly at the chime of her voice next to him and slowly his hand left his belt.  Ash could almost feel the ocean of emptiness wash away each of the simplest of strategies and he sighed when it beached the warm glow of Misty.

"Ash?"  She asked louder.

"Pikachu, go!"

"Pikachu?  Ash, what are you doing??"  Brock asked, confused.

Suddenly, he'd realize his mistake...

[ end flashback ]

The first few weeks these sort of things would happen, he found himself overly confused about this and almost unable to battle, but sooner or later, thinking of Misty became a battle strategy itself… and he would win constantly because of it.  Is it his problem that his affection towards her is somehow leaking out of his daily lifestyle?  Well, considering how many times he's gaped at her, thought about her continuously, and spoken to her, not to mention the constant nagging… he was amazed at how well he'd been able to hold the affection in for so long.  

A tiny squeak in the floorboards interrupted his train of thought and he looked over to the cause of it.  There was a boy, about his age, with spiky black hair, knee-torn jeans, and no shirt.  Aware of Ash's movement, he glanced at him nervously and motioned towards the door.  With a quickened pace, he rushed out the door.  Ash raised an eyebrow at this, a tad confused, but stood up, for once feeling how tired his body really was.  He slowly walked outside as well, careful not to trip over anything.  

The shirtless boy leaned against the brick wall of the Poke'Center and sighed wearily, crossing his arms across his chest.  He gasped a little, hearing the door open and another boy follow him outside.  "Hey, I'm Ash."  He greeted with a tired smile.

The boy held out his hand  and smiled back, "Adrian.  Sorry if I woke you up."

"No, no, I can't get to sleep…"

"Neither can I.  I… can't stop thinking about…erm.. a certain someone."

Ash eyed Adrian's pink blush as he stared at the soggy grass, getting soggier as the rain water trickled from the ceiling a few feet ahead.  "A friend of mine…"  He explained.

"That's weird."  

"Why?"

"I… *ahem* seem to have the.. same problem."  Ash fidgeted uncomfortably.  

Adrian chuckled.  "How old are you?"

"Thirteen… why?"

Adrian grinned nervously, spotted a cement bench nearby and sat down.  He propped his head in between two palms and leaned them against his knees, sighing tiredly.  "So am I…  Do you think it's…too early to start thinking about… y'know, girls?"

"I don't know, but,"  Ash began, leaning against the brick wall, "You're not the only one if it is."

They stayed silent for a little while, letting their minds race, sinking into the same empty pit, both thinking about their friends.  Adrian broke the rainy silence…

"We've been traveling together for a little over three years, and… we've been the best of friends for a while… but ever since I saw her, I always hoped that we'd be more than friends."

Ash gasped, "That's just like me and M--err… m-my friend."

Adrian smirked at him, "What's her name?  Is it pretty?"

"Uh… It's…-uh, Misty."

Adrian's smirk slowly faded into a frown.  "Is that so?"  He abruptly stood, nearly knocking Ash off of the wall and grabbed his shirt around his neck.  Despite the gruff look on his face and that killer scowl and deathly glare, Adrian felt as if he was about to collapse from the lack of sleep.  "Misty, is it?!"  He smacked Ash against the wall, making him grimace.

"Adrian?!  What---"

"What kind of sick prank are you tryin' to pull, kid?"  Ash could have sworn he spotted a fiery look in his eyes.

This time, it was Ash's turn to glare.  "I don't know what your talking about!"

"You've got some nerve, boy!"

"Who the hell do you think you are?!"

"What's going on here?"  The two boys looked to Joy standing in the doorway of the Poke'Center with her arms crossed across her chest and a stern look on her face,  "It is way too late; you two should get to sleep!"

With a last distressed sigh, Joy cleared her throat and entered the 'Center.  Adrian scoffed and shook Ash away from his grip, tossing him to the ground.  Ash fell with a pained grunt.

"I don't have time for wimps like you.  Neither does Misty."

Ash angrily stood to his feet.  "I'm not a wimp!"

"Adrian?  What's going on…"  

The sweet voice dripped from the 'Center's entrance and they both looked to the door.  A girl stood, propped up against the side with her arms crossed.  "Why aren't you asleep?"

"Why aren't you asleep?"  Adrian asked.

"Misty…?  What are you wearing??"  Ash gaped.

She looked confused, and she turned her attention to him, raising an eyebrow, "Do I know you?"

"You… what are you, sleep walking or something?"

"Misty… let's go to bed."  Adrian said, walking to the door.

"You weren't beating on this poor boy, were you?"  Ash heard her say as they fell invisible, taken in by the 'Center's still darkness.

A few seconds later, Misty was awakened by the sound of quiet knocking at her door.  She looked over to her alarm clock and noticed that it was… way too early for someone to be up and knocking on her door and waking her up.  She tiredly made her way across the cold room and felt for the doorknob.  Despite the lack of light in the building, she knew who it was.

"Ash?  What are you doing awake?"

He replied by making his way into her room, softly closing the door behind him.  "How do you know Adrian?"

"Adrian?  Who are you talking about?"

"Adri…  you just woke up, didn't you?"  Ash observed. 

She nodded slowly.  "Mm-hm…"

She was still wearing her shorts and tank, he noticed, which was definitely different from that… outfit… 

"Oh.  Sorry…"  

They stood deathly still for a while, exactly two feet apart, feeling the night's cold scamper down their spines…  Soon, Misty found that she was holding her breath…

"S-sorry…"  Ash apologized once more and left urgently.

Misty stared at the spot where he used to be, taking a few seconds for her sleepy mind to come to the fact that he had actually left, and slowly shut the door.  She already forgot half of the conversation right before she practically fell unto the bed in deep slumber. 

"No, these are my doughnuts.  Go buy your own."

 Misty growled at Adrian and attempted to snatch the bag of sweets from his hand.  He lifted them away from her, smirking at how high he could hold the bag from her reach.  She crossed her arms and pouted.  "Aw, c'mon!"  she whined.

"Not until you say it."  He teased.

"No!"

"Say it…"

Misty growled angrily and stamped her foot.  "That's so unfair!!"

Adrian laughed, "It's not like you're going to ruin your reputation or anything!"

"Fine…"  She mumbled, "Adrian is…,"  She blushed and her face tensed, "Adrian… is…"

Adrian leaned against the front counter, grabbing another sugary doughnut.

"Adrian… is the most selfish bastard I've ever met!"

Adrian jumped.  "That's not what you were supposed to say!"

She stuck her tongue out at him.  

…12 seconds earlier:::

Still fast asleep, a small, crooked smile crept onto Ash's face as dream-Misty ran her fingers through his hair and caressed his neck.  She leaned in close- closer, and closer, slowly…- but suddenly, a tingling feeling in his hand caused it to move involuntarily around to her back, creeping downwards very slowly until it reached the brim of her shorts.  He let out a shocked gasp when his own hand nudged itself further…  Misty screeched and smacked him hard in the cheek shouting, "selfish bastard!!"

..He slowly opened his eyes as he realized that he was laying on the hard floor in front of the couch and his cheek hurt miserably from the fall.  In his mind, the words 'selfish bastard' echoed over and over until he found out that he had a headache that was quickly evolving into a migraine.  He sat up, tenderly rubbing the side of his face and looked around.  The sun had long ago risen and Brock was nowhere in sight.  He groggily walked to Misty's room, without really knowing the reason why...  Maybe just a talk, maybe.  As he walked, he noticed that he couldn't keep a straight line, bumping into both sides of the hall.  The door looked a teeny bit blurry in his sight and he reached for the doorknob and pulled it open.

The sound of her door opening caused Misty to jump and she quickly began to hide the tears that had been trickling down her cheek, and tossed the journal beneath the bed, watching it slide across the floor and beneath the sheets.  As she looked to the hoping it to be Nurse Joy with good news about Togepi, Ash stumbled in, almost slamming the door behind him.  His eyes drooped heavily and he looked longingly at Misty's bed…

"Ash, what do you want?"  she said, feeling slightly disappointed.

He didn't answer, but walked to her in a sloppy line and collapsed beside her on the bed, fast asleep.  Misty sighed. 


	2. chapter2

Misty smiled softly to herself as she gently pulled the sheets up around his shoulders while he slept peacefully.  "Goodnight…"  she whispered.  'Okay, so it's not really night…  but he still deserved this bed even last night.'

"Goo…niiih…"  Ash mumbled sleepily.

Misty giggled and softly kissed his warm cheek.  She was slightly surprised to see him smiling softly when she pulled away.  Her pleased smile faded, though, when he flipped over and muttered, "'Night, Mom."  She softly growled and retrieved the journal from beneath the bed.  

Unseen by either of them, Pikachu, whom observed and mentally documented the scene, kissed his trainers cheek as well.

Brock closed the door to the 'Center's restroom and sighed while straightening his shirt out.  He was about to check on Misty when he passed someone…

"Oh.  Hey Misty."  He mumbled.  Then it hit him.  

"New wardrobe, eh?"

Misty turned around to face him, chewing vigorously at something as a boy lay behind her on the floor with a black eye.  "Huh?"

"Who's that?"  He asked.

Misty shifted from one foot to the next and adjusted her arm stocking in confusion.  "Do I know you?"

The boy groggily stood up, straining to pull himself up using the ledge of the service counter.  "You owe me.."  He mumbled, and collapsed to the floor, which was only a few inches to fall, anyways.  Misty giggled.  Brock shook his head unsurely and mumbled incoherently,  "Sorry, miss, it must be me."

"I am having the weirdest day… everyone seems to be mistaking me for somebody else…"  Suddenly, her face brightened immensely and the stars in her eyes magnified as she sighed out, "I must look like a movie star!"  

"In your dreams…"  Adrian mumbled.  An angry vein popped from her forehead and she slugged him.  Cheerfully, she then stole yet another mini doughnut from the unconscious lump on the floor.

Brock was making his may down the hallway, when someone jumped out in front of him.  The person slammed the door behind him and yelled out, "Excuse me!" as he passed the confused rock trainer.  Brock looked behind him, where the kid was running, in interest, to see him jump into the men's restroom.  

The abrupt knocking at her door caused her hand to clamp, which shut the journal she was holding along with it.  "Yeah?"

"It's Brock.  I need to ask you something." 

Misty's eyes widened.  She glanced quickly from Ash to the door in worry.  'If he sees Ash in my bed…  oh, I don't want to know what will run through his head..'

Quickly, she looked around the room, frantically searching for somewhere to stuff him.  'A hiding place…'  She thought.  She considered the window, but… that was too long of a fall; it would wake Ash up…  She felt her time run out—

The door opened slowly and Brock asked, "Are you dressed?"

'Good excuse!'  Misty thought.  She hauled herself against the door, "Yeah, I mean, no, I mean, I'm getting dressed!"

"Oh.  Sorry.  I'll wait…"

Misty spotted the closet near the corner and opened it slowly, partially afraid of what could be found in there.  But as her curiosity reached it's peak, she was sort of disappointed that it was completely clean and spotless, but happy that it was enough to stuff a body in.  Slowly, she strained to lift the sleeping boy from her bed, but he hit the floor with a hard thud, his hat flipped off on his head.  Misty winced, praying that Ash hadn't woke up and the lifelessness in her hands told her that he hadn't.  She sighed in relief and her shoulders sagged.  'How could someone sleep through that…'  She dragged the body into the open closet and pulled him inside.  

Once she made a good fit, she shut the door slowly while checking to make sure that she wasn't squashing a finger or something.  Pikachu cocked his head in curiosity.  "Pi..?"

Misty put a finger to her lips and pretended to zip them as if there were a zipper on her mouth.  Pikachu nodded and repeated the action.  Satisfied, she pulled open the door.  "Yes, Brock?"

Brock's face was full of curiosity.  "There was a lot of thudding in there.  What's going on?"

"Nothing."  Misty replied quickly, "It's just… Pikachu playing around." 

"Oh…"  Brock nodded slowly.  "Is Ash in there with you?" 

"Why do you ask that?"  Misty reddened slightly, "Why do you think Ash would be in my room?  Even if he was, why do you wanna know?  It's not like we was doing anything!  --I-if he was in here, that is."

Brock sweatdropped.  "Um… no, that's okay, I just haven't seen him at all this morning, is all."

After a minute of uneasy silence, Misty spoke up, "So, you wanted to ask me something?"  

Brock nodded and slowly looked around.  "Yeah, it's about Ash…  Err, can I come in?"

The sinking feeling in her stomach told her that this wasn't really about Ash.  It was about her and Ash.  She nodded politely and shut the door behind him as he strolled in.  Once he made himself comfortable on the bed, Misty sat beside him, and he cleared his throat.  

"I feel that I should take the liberty of asking you this, since I am the oldest of the group and farthest the one responsible of the both of you-"  As Brock went on, Misty could feel the air leak out of her lungs- she knew it was about them.  "-…So, I just want to know one thing…"

Ash slowly sat up and realized that it was dark.  Everywhere.  He quickly looked around in fear, but recognized both Brock and Misty's drowned out voices.  They were right next to his ear.  A little light leaked in from under the door on the carpet and his panic slowly deflated as he propped himself up against the closet wall realizing that he was, indeed, in a closet.  But why?  The musty humid heat reminded him of the sweat dripping down the side of his cheek and he rubbed his face with the back of his hand and fanned his overly warm chest with his shirt.

"Is Ash just a friend to you?"  

Misty's dainty blush intensified and her eyes grew wide.  She could feel her heart first pound numerously, then flutter and her stomach first sank, then tied itself in knots.  That… was a question even she couldn't answer to herself…  "I don't know…"  She said just above a whisper, not even focusing on Brock's glare anymore, but her stare was now into nothing, near his shoulder.  Her head shook somewhat, "I… don't know…"

Brock smiled friendly and patted her knee as he stood to leave.  "That's all I needed to know."  He scratched Pikachu behind the ear in goodbye and just about the time he reached the doorknob, the closet door opened.

Ash stumbled out of the little closet, fully awake and shirtless to boot.  He wiped the sweat off of his forehead once more and faced Misty.  "Is he gone?"  

Brock, totally wide-eyed, observed the scene in front of him.  Ash looked at him and grinned, seething, "I guess not…"  Brock left the room quickly without saying or doing anything.  He had enough answers for one day.  Misty tried to hide her red face in her hands.  She was so embarrassed.  

'I should've just left him on the bed…'  she thought. 

Ash took a seat next to her on the bed, slinging his shirt onto his shoulder.  "What was that all about?"

Without answering his question, Misty asked one of her own.  "Why did you take your shirt off?"

"You have no idea how hot it was in there."  He said and laid down on Misty's bed sideways with a happy sigh, "Your room is much more cooler!"

Her glare softened and all of her embarrassment and confused anger melted away at the cuteness of his childish smile.  

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something out of place and directed his attention to it.  "What's this?  A diary?"  He reached for the journal beside Misty on the bed, but the words, "a diary" knocked her out of her daydreams enough so that she was able to protect it.  

"No,"  She lied.  If he didn't think it was a diary, he wouldn't be tempted to sneak into her things and read it down the road, "It's a…um… it's none of your business."

He fought to keep the smirk from damaging his perfectly innocent act.  "Even if it was, I wouldn't want to read it.  I don't even like reading my own diary."  Though, the evil smirk was not going to give up, and it devilishly degraded the innocence.  "Besides, who would want to read the life of a girl named –Misty-?"

She scowled.  "Well, I would.  I'm sure my s..-parents…would…" 

Her anger quickly dissolved into sadness and Ash caught it when her gaze reluctantly drifted to the journal in her hands.  "My parents would have."

Everything seemed to have fallen in the dreadful silence and Ash wouldn't dare to speak.  He heard her sniffle and looked away, tearing his gaze to the quilt on her bed.  After a while, after the boredom had left him to picking at a loose string in the quilting, he spoke absently, "Read me a page."

"No!  Why would I??"  

"Well, what do you have to hide?"  He asked, sitting up.  

Misty glared at him.  Oh great, now he's interested in her diary.  Perfect.  "Plenty."

"Like what?"

"Like, personal stuff that I have no intention to share."

"Ooh, really?  All your personal stuff packed into one little journal, right?"

"Yeah…  And if you ever, EVER try to read it, you'll die such a horrible and miserable death the second I find out."

"So that must mean that the personal stuff must be pretty personal to protect it that harshly, huh?

Her glare hardened and the diary's lock made a small click, then she stuffed the key into her pocket .She jumped up and started walking to her door, leaving the diary on the bedside table alone.  "Yep."

Ash followed her out of the room.  "You don't trust me, do you?"

"Never have, never will."

Pikachu sniffed at the diary curiously and poked at the green cover, unsatisfied.

"I'm, not that untrustworthy, you know."  Ash said as they entered the lobby.  "Even if I was, I don't think I'd want to get into your business, anyway."

"Why is that?"  Misty asked.

"Well, I guess if  I had found something out, I wouldn't be able to think of you the same since I'd know something 'super-secret' about you."

"You don't want to know any of my secrets?"  Misty felt a little relieved that he didn't seem nosy.  But it sort of disappointed her that her secrets didn't seem 'good enough'.  "Why?"

"Um… maybe I don't need to know anything.  Maybe I like you the way I know you now."

Misty smiled softly to herself.  "I like you too, Ash."

A shriek was heard towards the front desk where a guy with red and white striped sleeves and a black bandana ferociously tickled a red-head struggling to get up off of the floor whom was laughing like crazy.  A boy with light brown hair and about Brock's age stood beside the two with a nervous grin.  

"Are you two finished?"  He asked lightly.

Misty saw Nurse Joy standing at the service desk signing a paper and approached her.  "Nurse Joy, how is Togepi?"

Joy looked up at her with a somewhat worried expression on her face.  Her eyes were a bit red.  "Who?  Oh, Togepi…"  

As Nurse Joy's sentence drifted off, Misty's worry grew to a dangerous level.  "He's okay, right??"

"Um.. who?"

"Togepi!"

"Oh.  Togepi.  Is it your Togepi…?"

Misty's worry continued to grow as she stared at Joy disbelievingly.  

"Oh, you're Misty!"  Nurse Joy said sheepishly.  "I'm sorry, Misty.  I didn't get much sleep last night…  Togepi.  So, Togepi is doing just fine.  He'll be fully healed by tonight."

Misty sighed in relief.  That felt better…  Now, she didn't have to worry about him consistently any longer and she could faintly feel the weight of the worry lift from her shoulders.  

"That's great to hear, Nurse Joy."  Ash said.

The red-headed stranger's laughter died down.  "Adrian!  Everyone's looking!"  She grinned mischievously and smacked his shoulder.  At this, Misty's attention centered on the grinning girl.  At that, the grinning girl's attention centered on Misty.  

"…"


	3. chapter3

Chapter 3

"Misty!!"  The two of them screeched happily.  "Ohmygod it's you!!!"

In an instant, the two girls were into a rambling conversation that contained exclaims such as "I haven't seen you in years!" or "what the heck are you wearing?".  It confused their audience beyond all thought.  After a while, they both stopped for air simultaneously and continued to talk excitedly amongst each other.  Both Adrian and Ash exchanged awed glances, as did Brock and.. that other guy.

'They must… know each other, I guess.'  Ash thought, still dazed at how much one resembled the other.

"-So!  I guess you retired your old wardrobe, huh?"  Misty asked.

"Yeah, ever since I've visited the North Yuke Region, it's been a whole new me!"

"Liar,"  Adrian piped in, "It wasn't North Yuke that made you 'you', it was meeting me when you decided that you needed a change."

Misty glanced at the boy over Misty's shoulder curiously, making Misty nervous.  "is he your… boyfr-?"

"Yes!  Adrian is my… good friend."  Misty nodded agitatedly.

The other boy standing next to Adrian sweatdropped.  "They've been getting… that.. a lot."

"And just what are you trying to say, _Brad?"  Misty spun around, clenching her fist in a threatening position.  "Just because we act close doesn't mean that we're _that _close!"  Adrian sweatdropped nervously, finding himself at a loss for words._

The day lagged onwards as time seemed to pull itself forward into a lazy future, filled with more summer afternoon sunshine.  There wasn't a cloud in the sky.  The warm breeze skipped along a dirt path, bringing dust springing into the air and into the cool fluttering grass that was beating against the brick wall of the Poke'Center.  The door slid open and two groups, sans Brock and each one accompanied with a separate twin, walked out exit.  

"Well, it's been nice meeting you again."  Misty said, wishing she didn't have to leave her old best friend.

"Yeah, same here.  Hey, where're you guys headed?  I thought you couldn't leave town 'cause of your toge- uh, thing."  Misty asked.

"Well, we were going to visit the gym in the next town, since it isn't so that far away." 

"Oh, you're not going to find the Syris Gym Leader,"  Brad interfered, "He's on vacation.  We already checked."  

"Brad?"  Nurse Joy asked, walking out of the Poke'Center, "Are you going to help this afternoon?"

"Huh?  Oh, yeah, sure."  Brad said, walking back inside with Joy, "I promised Nurse Joy that I would help out in the Poke'Center for my training records, this week."  Brad informed his friends, "You guys can go on without me."

Pikachu sighed pitifully at Ash's feet.  Ash looked down disappointingly at his pokemon, but smiled tiredly.  "I guess we really should take a break."

Pikachu caught Adrian's attention, "Hey Ash, I didn't know you had a pikachu."  He said, "I got one, too.  Her name's Julia.  But she actually likes her pokeball."

"Pikachu is my very first pokemon.  I've had him for three years."  Ash said proudly.

"Really?"  Adrian asked, surprised, "Julia was my first pokemon, too!"

"Let's battle!  One on one!"

"Sure!"

The Misty in the punk-ish black tee with pink skull yawned and rolled her eyes.  "I'm already bored.  Hey Misty, you wanna go get some ice cream while we wait for them to finish?"  She asked, pointing to a small diner down the road.

Misty, standing by Ash's side, hesitated for a minute.  Then, she nodded and followed Misty down the road.  

"Hey, Mist!  Where are you going?"  Ash called out behind her.  "You're gonna miss it!"

"I'm just going to get some ice cream."  She replied.  

Ash sighed disappointedly, but smirked at his opponent, nevertheless engaged in battle like nature had intended his spirit.  

Misty grinned at Misty, "He gave you a nickname?"

"Eh-"  Misty blushed, caught completely off guard.  "Um…  Well, we've just known each other for so long, y'know?"

Misty giggled, "From now on, I will call you Mist."  She teased.

Misty gasped and her little blush grew.  "You can't call me that!"

"Why not?"

"Eh… 'cause.. because…  because you can't!"

"Oh, I get it.  It's that _special_ sort of thing."

"Gross!"  Misty felt her face turn from pinkish to red.  "Don't even think that accidentally!"

Misty played with her sleeves, still grinning from her previous teasing.  "Hey, I have an idea."

"It isn't about Ash and me, is it?"

"No…  Do you think you could… start calling me Ann?"

"Ann?  Why?"

"Well,"  Misty said, looking up to the sky.  "It would be like the good 'ol days.  Misty-Ann Pearich.  Do you remember when everyone would call me Mis-Ann just to tell us apart?"

Misty laughed, "I remember that. Okay, Mis-Ann, what kink of ice cream do you like?"

[A/N: Now you can tell the difference…  The confusion hopes to stop here!  Misty= the one ya'll are used to, 'Mist'.  Mis-Ann= the new Misty, the look-alike.  The technique seems crumby, but I promise to try to do my best with it.  Oh, also, I don't like to write out battle scenes… (sorry!)  If you've read my other stories, you might have noticed.  I usually end up writing the outcome, instead-]

Feeling disappointed, Ash returned the pokeball back onto his belt with a sigh of defeat.  The victory of Adrian loomed over his mind like a ravaging swarm of authority.  "You win."  

Adrian grinned and returned Julia.  "I can't believe I beat the famous Ash Ketchum.  It's amazing."

"Don't get too cocky."  Ash said, removing the cap from his head and absently untangling his hair.  "You're lucky my inspiration isn't here."

"Huh?  Your inspiration?"

His grin faded and he let the battled-out pikachu climb his shoulder.  'I don't think I can even battle by myself anymore…'  he thought, 'It's like I've become dependent on Misty's company each time I battle.  What will it be like if she has to go home, again?  I might have to just quit…'  "How do I do this without her..?"

"Do what without whom?"  Adrian said, "You're starting to confuse me, man."  He began to grow tired of Ash's strange talks and his washed out expressions.  It looked like something had been on his mind so heavily that he couldn't concentrate on anything else, including his ever-so-famous battles.   "Are you thinking about Misty?"

Ash blushed and jumped at Adrian's inquiry.  "Wah—why would I think about Misty?  What makes you think that??"

"Whoa, chill, man.  You told me you liked her, already.  Remember, that night outside the Poke'Center?"

Ash felt himself relax.  But he still wasn't comfortable with how someone whom knew Misty and his secret at the same time…  He just didn't trust Adrian well enough.  Heck, he didn't even trust a book (his diary) well enough, why would he trust a person?  It could be used as blackmail!  Damn…  Pikachu started to snicker from atop his shoulder.  But… hadn't Adrian told him something, too?

"So, you don't think about Misty when you're battling?"  Ash asked.

"Think about her?  Nope, neither one."  Adrian smirked, "I have to think about battling, not girls, if I want to get as good as you."

Uh-oh.. Ash suddenly felt as if he wasn't a good example, pulling off battle strategies from the inspirational thoughts of a girl.  How could that make him look any better to people that looked up to him?  Sure, if he was a novice trainer it wouldn't be as bad, but now that the journey in yet another country has begun and since his name had rank the highest of the most famous league training camp in this new country, the name 'Ash Ketchum' would most likely be very famous to every pokemon trainer across the land.  And he battled, selfishly thinking about a girl, like a dependant coward?  

"Well, I don't think about her either."  Ash lied, "I'm just surprised I lost…  Maybe I didn't get good sleep last night."  It would be okay to think about her if she was.. his girlfriend…  BUT she isn't.  Maybe thinking about her was nothing but wishful thinking?  "I'm hungry."

Suddenly, Brock came walking out of the 'Center.  "Oh, you guys are still here?  I thought you all had headed to Syris by now."

"You looked a little hesitant when I started to leave.  Why?"  Mis-Ann asked, swirling her spoon in her chocolate ice cream.

"I just don't usually walk out on a battle.  When Ash is battling, that is."  Misty admitted, "I wouldn't look like a good friend."

"So… you think of Ash as a friend?  But you've known him for so long!" 

"Well, what about you?  What do you think about Adrian?"  Misty asked.  Mis-Ann stared at her blankly for a while…  Suddenly, her face lit up and she shoved a heap of chocolate ice cream in her mouth.  Misty chuckled.  'It's about time you ran out of stuff to say.'

After a good gulp of melted ice cream, Mis-Ann let her hair down from the ponytail it was lately accustomed to.  "I hate my hair being up.  It hurts my head."  She saw Misty staring at her hair and haltered, "W-what?"  She nervously combed her fingers in her hair, "Is there something in my hair?"

"You should keep it down.  It looks good on you."

Suddenly, Mis-Ann laughed.  She reached across to Misty and crudely pulled the band from her hair.  "What looks good on me-"

"Looks good on me."  Misty said, now catching up to why her friend had been laughing at her.  She grinned.  "I miss doing that."

"Mm."  Mis-Ann nodded, "It has been a while.  But most of all, I miss the 'girl' talks.  I can't enjoy that sort of thing because, well, that's the outcome of traveling with two guys for three years.  Never did I have the chance to talk about dreams, hopes, clothes or crushes."  She stopped, aware of Misty's amused face and almost knew that the question would pop up again.  "I'm gonna go get some more ice cream."  She excused herself and hastily moved away from the table.

Upon Mis-Ann's return, Ash, Adrian, and Pikachu all entered the small diner on the side of the road.  Ash looked around to find Misty, but Adrian found Mis-Ann immediately.  He approached the small booth accompanied by the twins. 

"Miss me, ladies?"  Adrian welcomed himself among them and threw an arm around Mis-Ann.  She tilted herself away from him with a disgusted look on her face.

"Who invited you?"  Mis-Ann asked, scooting away from him.  

"My, my, aren't we rude today?"  Adrian teased.  Just then, Ash arrived with Pikachu on his shoulder.  He sat down next to Misty with a sigh.

"What's wrong?"  Misty asked Ash.

"Nothing."

"He's upset because he lost to me."  Adrian smirked, holding a proud thumb into his chest. Mis-Ann gasped.

"No way!  Now I've seen everything!"  She said, leaning over the table to Ash, "And you lost to a loser like Adrian??"

"I'm not a loser!"

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

Ash looked over to Misty with a  confused frown, "Why do I feel like I've seen this before?"

She shrugged and shook her head, "It must be a common thing these days, because I'm getting the same feeling."

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Actually,"  Ash began, "they kinda remind me of us when we fight."

Misty slightly cocked her head to the side and grinned, "Y'know, I think you're right."

"Are too!"

"You can't prove it!"  Adrian dared.

Suddenly, Mis-Ann leaned forward and quickly pecked him on the cheek.  Adrian froze, continuing to stare at her with wide eyes.  "You see?  Loser."  She sighed and held up both empty hands, as if in defeat.

This sudden, and frank, dare of Mis-Ann's had caught both Ash's and Misty's attention.  How could someone be so… well, blunt?  It looked as if it hadn't bothered Mis-Ann at the least bit as she continued to shovel down ice cream, but Adrian…  well, he looked as if he had just seen God.  Then it had suddenly occurred to Misty that her friend had just suddenly kissed her crush, and without an ounce of embarrassment.  Was it possible?  Maybe Mis-Ann had just known Adrian so long that she could predict what would happen? 

"Uh, could I just get a cheeseburger with fries?"  

His voice, more or less Ash's food order, had snapped Misty back to reality, and she realized that an impatient waitress had been standing by their table tapping her shoe against the floor.

**


End file.
